Employment in the Maritime Sector

Scotland’s marine economy employed 71,000 people in 2022, making up 2.7% of the total Scottish employment. This excludes offshore renewables and oil and gas extraction.

Fig. 1 shows total headcount (i.e. number of people employed), and number of Full Time Equivalent (FTE) positions. Many marine sectors such as tourism and inshore fishing employ a large number of people on a part time basis, resulting in the large difference when considering headcount vs FTE. Numbers of people employed stayed broadly stable between 2013 and 2019 but fell markedly in 2020 - likely due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021 and 2022, numbers increased again showing signs of a slow recovery.

Aberdeen is the local authority with the largest number of marine jobs in Scotland. Highland lond authority area has the second highest number, and Aberdeenshire is third (Fig. 2 & 3). 

Fig. 4 details numbers of people employed in the Marine Sector in Aberdeen City and Aberseenhire local authority areas. Changes in these numbers are difficult to interpret, with populations moving between the two areas. Together, maritime employment numbers have remained stable between 2019 and 2022.